Ep. 71 David Cibrian, Co-Founder and CEO, ATI Partners
ATI Partners is a public and private infrastructure fund manager that focuses on middle market investment opportunities in transportation, digital, and social community infrastructure. In this episode of Investors & Operators, David Cibrian sits down with Jordan Selleck to discuss:
Seizing opportunities when they present themselves
What it means to be a first generation American
Why infrastructure is more than toll roads and bridges
…and much more.
“It's about changing the mindset and changing the way we execute, both public and private, to improve infrastructure.”
An Opportunistic Mentality
David Cibrian is a first-generation American born in Miami to Cuban parents. The immigrant mindset his parents instilled in him from a young age was to have a strong work ethic, persistence, and thoroughness.
The summer after he turned 16, his dad surprised him with a car—a car he could only drive if he got a job. Knowing that the car was his ticket to teenage freedom, David found himself at the Big Penny Car Wash after seeing a help wanted sign. While waiting to speak with the manager, he noticed an employee having trouble communicating due to a language barrier. Without a second thought, David started translating between English and Spanish. Before he even formally applied for the job, the manager said “you’re hired.”
Infrastructure, Innovation, and Investment
ATI stands for American Triple I—Infrastructure, Innovation, and Investment. Infrastructure is more than just toll roads and bridges. When ATI was founded in 2019, they set to focus on transportation, digital, and social community infrastructure. They currently have a few projects in the works, but perhaps the most impressive is the Port San Antonio Innovation Center.
The Port San Antonio Innovation Center is a redevelopment of what used to be a large air force base in San Antonio, Texas, that employed about 15,000 civilians. The innovation center is a multidisciplinary venue with free internet access, educational opportunities, job recovery and creation, and economic development.
Diversity Within Diversity
“Diverse fund managers are consistently outperforming non-diverse fund managers,” says David. Despite being a small firm, they have professionals on their team from Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. When you have individuals from varying backgrounds, you can see the broader picture that much better.
Simply put, ATI has the “ability to come together as a team, look at opportunities through [their] own individual lenses, and then come up with the right result.”
LINKS:
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DAVID CIBRIAN is CEO, CIO, and Co-Founder of American Triple I. He is responsible for developing and directing overall business strategies; building trusted relationships with asset and investor partners; leading high-quality investment decisions; and enforcing adherence to compliance, legal, and operating guidelines and policies. David was formerly a Managing Director with Brevet Capital, a New York City-based investment firm founded in 1998. Among other responsibilities, he headed Brevet’s firm-wide Government Financing Programs. He is experienced in various facets of fund management, including originations, underwriting/structuring, and asset management. David also served in a variety of roles during his career – lawyer, accountant, corporate executive, and investment professional. David was formerly a CPA with Ernst & Young, Los Angeles and was a practicing international and corporate attorney for 25 years, including his experience in public finance at O’Melveny & Myers, Los Angeles. David formerly served on the Board of Mirage Energy Corporation, a start-up developer of natural gas storage facilities outside of the United States, and the Board of Onko Solutions, a development stage medical device company. He was also a Senior Advisor to Civitas Capital Group, an alternative investment firm.
David is a former member of the Texas Finance Commission and the Texas Credit Union Commission having been appointed by then-Texas Governor Rick Perry. David holds a Juris Doctor with honors from Georgetown Law School and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting with honors from Loyola Marymount University.
